LAS VEGAS — There are only a few hours to prepare for the next opponent during a basketball tournament, but Colorado State senior guard Daniel Beja- rano said the No. 3-seeded Rams had no choice but to work on two scenarios for Friday night’s Mountain West Tournament semifinal game against No. 2 seed San Diego State.

There would be a game plan with Colorado State senior forward J.J. Avila and another strategy if he were unavailable.

Avila, voted this week to the all-Mountain West first team, sprained his right ankle with 6:40 remaining in the first half Thursday night against Fresno State and never returned to the lineup. Colorado State (27-5) led just 17-14 when Avila went out. His teammates responded by hitting six consecutive 3-pointers before halftime, and CSU cruised to a 71-59 victory at the Thomas & Mack Center.

“We’re going to prepare both ways (for San Diego State),” Bejarano said late Thursday night. “We’re going to prepare if J.J. is playing and if he’s not playing. We have the best coaching staff in the country, and we’re going to come up with a plan.”

As it turned out, Friday provided both good news and bad news regarding Avila. X-rays taken early in the afternoon revealed no fractures. But CSU also announced that Avila was “not expected to play” against San Diego State (25-7).

Colorado State added that Avila is expected to be at full strength for any postseason action next week.

Thursday night, Avila told reporters that he “rolled the ankle pretty good, but it will be OK. It’s tough (being sidelined), but I have 100 percent faith in these guys.”

CSU coach Larry Eustachy said watching Avila go down and then needing help to hobble off the court was a coach’s “worst nightmare. You never know how a team is going to react. Supposedly you’re a ‘bubble team’ and you need to win this game (against Fresno State) to get into the NCAA Tournament, and your all-league guy goes down.

“How we (reacted) was most impressive. The character they showed — it’s one of the top experiences I’ve ever had in a long career. … It’s one of those special moments.”

Avila spoke in the locker room at halftime and told the Rams they couldn’t allow his injury to ruin all of the work they had put in.

“It’s hard (without Avila), but we just have to get the job done,” said CSU junior guard Gian Clavell.

The Broncos' 2018 class of first-year players endured some lighthearted hazing after practice Tuesday in an annual event at UCHealth Training Center. Veterans played barber in the most hilarious (and mean) ways possible. Here is a collection of the best rookie haircuts this training camp.